FIFA World Cup 2026 :Canada/Mexico/United States: Discussion Thread

[Sanitough]

I do not agree with you about the factors and comparing Qatar with America, we know getting a visa to enter the USA is more complicated, especially for people from some countries with a bad reputation and bad relations with the USA but I think America will make an exception and some special rules for the people who come to visit this country for watching the worth cup games. That's why I don't think if there will be a problem with getting a visa.

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, USA is one of those countries which favor illegal immigrants over legal immigrants. If you apply for a legal visa, you need to wait for 3-4 years to get a hearing. An easier route is to travel to Mexico and then jump the fence over Mexico-US border. Every year millions of illegal immigrants take this step. Now I don't know whether the Americans will ease visa rules for the FIFA World Cup of 2026. If they don't do so, then I don't expect a large attendance from third world nations such as India and Indonesia.

That sounds easy but actually, it's not because it is too dangerous for the people to do that thing. I know that there will be some people who will resort to that option just to see the games in the upcoming World Cup but I don't think that the US is not aware of this and it is already safe to assume that they will be pouring some of their resources including the presence of their military to watch over their borders to avoid illegal immigrants from crossing especially the terrorists who acts and disguised just like a regular immigrant.

The only safest thing to do is to follow the process and execute a tourist visa if you came from a Third World country as that will just take a couple of months to have an interview, having some relatives living in the US is a plus as that will improve your chances. Most importantly, if you're looking forward to see the games, I suggest that you act towards the matter as soon as possible.

[KTChampions]

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, USA is one of those countries which favor illegal immigrants over legal immigrants. If you apply for a legal visa, you need to wait for 3-4 years to get a hearing. An easier route is to travel to Mexico and then jump the fence over Mexico-US border. Every year millions of illegal immigrants take this step. Now I don't know whether the Americans will ease visa rules for the FIFA World Cup of 2026. If they don't do so, then I don't expect a large attendance from third world nations such as India and Indonesia.

Yes, this is true, but there is a logical explanation for this - many residents of third world countries after entering the United States will "get lost" and stay there illegally. By the way, I don’t know how it is now, but earlier, for everyone entering the US legally, vaccination (from covid) was mandatory, and for illegal immigrants who crossed the border and demanded citizenship/asylum, there was no such requirement  Thus, it was safer to enter the US illegally.

[Leviathan.007]

I do not agree with you about the factors and comparing Qatar with America, we know getting a visa to enter the USA is more complicated, especially for people from some countries with a bad reputation and bad relations with the USA but I think America will make an exception and some special rules for the people who come to visit this country for watching the worth cup games. That's why I don't think if there will be a problem with getting a visa.

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, USA is one of those countries which favor illegal immigrants over legal immigrants. If you apply for a legal visa, you need to wait for 3-4 years to get a hearing. An easier route is to travel to Mexico and then jump the fence over Mexico-US border. Every year millions of illegal immigrants take this step. Now I don't know whether the Americans will ease visa rules for the FIFA World Cup of 2026. If they don't do so, then I don't expect a large attendance from third world nations such as India and Indonesia.

I know about this and how difficult it is to take a visa for other people to America it takes years for normal people to get accepted but since we know there will be millions of visitors going to America for watching the games, I this there will be some special rules for these people, otherwise, none can easily watch the 2026 world cup games in America.

[alegotardo]

I know about this and how difficult it is to take a visa for other people to America it takes years for normal people to get accepted but since we know there will be millions of visitors going to America for watching the games, I this there will be some special rules for these people, otherwise, none can easily watch the 2026 world cup games in America.

Yeah... if even Qatar allowed the sale of alcoholic beverages in public, why can't ′′ Uncle Biden ′′ also facilitate the entry of some terrorists on American soil?

Jokes aside, I agree that certain special visas (with a reduced time for the FIFA World Cup event) can be facilitated for certain tourists without having to face so much bureaucracy, but even so, I believe that this should not be a quick process , so... anyone who wants to watch the games needs to start looking for a visa today instead of waiting for this facilitation.

[romero121]

I know about this and how difficult it is to take a visa for other people to America it takes years for normal people to get accepted but since we know there will be millions of visitors going to America for watching the games, I this there will be some special rules for these people, otherwise, none can easily watch the 2026 world cup games in America.

Yeah... if even Qatar allowed the sale of alcoholic beverages in public, why can't ′′ Uncle Biden ′′ also facilitate the entry of some terrorists on American soil?

Jokes aside, I agree that certain special visas (with a reduced time for the FIFA World Cup event) can be facilitated for certain tourists without having to face so much bureaucracy, but even so, I believe that this should not be a quick process , so... anyone who wants to watch the games needs to start looking for a visa today instead of waiting for this facilitation.

Qatar Government made more changes to its policies to give the best experience to the viewers during the world cup. Same as that making some changes will surely make it easier for the people residing away from USA get a Visa and watch the matches. Another important thing I liked with the Qatar world cup organising is the affordability. There were accommodation arranged for all levels of people. This means based on one's affordability one can choose the accommodation. I don't think USA will make such arrangements and already it is an expensive country for common people.

[Sithara007]

Yeah... if even Qatar allowed the sale of alcoholic beverages in public, why can't ′′ Uncle Biden ′′ also facilitate the entry of some terrorists on American soil?

Jokes aside, I agree that certain special visas (with a reduced time for the FIFA World Cup event) can be facilitated for certain tourists without having to face so much bureaucracy, but even so, I believe that this should not be a quick process , so... anyone who wants to watch the games needs to start looking for a visa today instead of waiting for this facilitation.

There should not be any last minute surprises for those who want to attend the World Cup. A lot of people will be spending their hard earned money, just to watch the matches in person. And if their visa gets cancelled two or three days before the travel date, then these people will feel dejected. I don't even know why FIFA selected USA as one of the hosts for 2026. This country has draconian visa rules and it is 100% certain that a lot of the fans are going to face issues related to travel (unless they want to jump the fence at the US-Mexico border).

[Juggy777]

There should not be any last minute surprises for those who want to attend the World Cup. A lot of people will be spending their hard earned money, just to watch the matches in person. And if their visa gets cancelled two or three days before the travel date, then these people will feel dejected. I don't even know why FIFA selected USA as one of the hosts for 2026. This country has draconian visa rules and it is 100% certain that a lot of the fans are going to face issues related to travel (unless they want to jump the fence at the US-Mexico border).

@Sithara007 anyone who has ever applied for a US visa knows that it’s not at all easy to get one and even if people apply now there’s no guarantee that they’ll get a visa for 3 year’s cause some people only get it for 10 months or even less. Furthermore when I had applied I had to submit tons of documents, yet it got rejected as I had a cancellation visa stamp on my passport hence my personal advice is to target European countries first cause having their stamps on your passport should boost your chances of securing an US visa.

[Leviathan.007]

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, USA is one of those countries which favor illegal immigrants over legal immigrants. If you apply for a legal visa, you need to wait for 3-4 years to get a hearing. An easier route is to travel to Mexico and then jump the fence over Mexico-US border. Every year millions of illegal immigrants take this step. Now I don't know whether the Americans will ease visa rules for the FIFA World Cup of 2026. If they don't do so, then I don't expect a large attendance from third world nations such as India and Indonesia.

Yes, this is true, but there is a logical explanation for this - many residents of third world countries after entering the United States will "get lost" and stay there illegally. By the way, I don’t know how it is now, but earlier, for everyone entering the US legally, vaccination (from covid) was mandatory, and for illegal immigrants who crossed the border and demanded citizenship/asylum, there was no such requirement  Thus, it was safer to enter the US illegally.

There are many people who think letting America host the 2026 world cup was a wrong decision and that they will have problems visiting this country to watch the World Cup games but I disagree and I think since America got the experience of hosting other great tournaments, they won't disappoint us and we are going to see a better world cup than what we saw in Qatar.

[Sithara007]

There are many people who think letting America host the 2026 world cup was a wrong decision and that they will have problems visiting this country to watch the World Cup games but I disagree and I think since America got the experience of hosting other great tournaments, they won't disappoint us and we are going to see a better world cup than what we saw in Qatar.

Obviously it will be better than Qatar and at least there will be no discrimination against unmarried couples and beer will be made available at the stadiums. Hotel rooms will be less expensive and travel will also be easier. But none of this matters, if the fans are unable to get a visa. Anyway, we have 3 years to go for the start of the tournament. Hopefully we will get some clarification regarding the visa issue by then. BTW, a lot can happen in three years. POTUS election is scheduled in around one and half years, for example. It's outcome can have a huge impact on the visa rules.

[TopTort777]

There are many people who think letting America host the 2026 world cup was a wrong decision and that they will have problems visiting this country to watch the World Cup games but I disagree and I think since America got the experience of hosting other great tournaments, they won't disappoint us and we are going to see a better world cup than what we saw in Qatar.

Obviously it will be better than Qatar and at least there will be no discrimination against unmarried couples and beer will be made available at the stadiums. Hotel rooms will be less expensive and travel will also be easier. But none of this matters, if the fans are unable to get a visa. Anyway, we have 3 years to go for the start of the tournament. Hopefully we will get some clarification regarding the visa issue by then. BTW, a lot can happen in three years. POTUS election is scheduled in around one and half years, for example. It's outcome can have a huge impact on the visa rules.

I think that completely opposite would happen. Hotels are more expensive in US than in Qatar. Cheat motels usually are not in the cities, and it will be costly to get there. Taxies are rather expensive in US. And all those stadiums are in the city centres. If this isnt New-York, then imho public transport isnt that developed as in other cities. People mostly travel by car. US is one of the brightest examples of capitalism. Locals will try to earn as maximum as possible from tourists Believe me.

About beer: wikipedia say that in Qatar it cost 14 bucks, in US, during NFL beer price differs from to 6 to 14 bucks Plus tax. I would not call "more available", but definitely variety of alcohol will be wider

[Patrol69]

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, USA is one of those countries which favor illegal immigrants over legal immigrants. If you apply for a legal visa, you need to wait for 3-4 years to get a hearing. An easier route is to travel to Mexico and then jump the fence over Mexico-US border. Every year millions of illegal immigrants take this step. Now I don't know whether the Americans will ease visa rules for the FIFA World Cup of 2026. If they don't do so, then I don't expect a large attendance from third world nations such as India and Indonesia.

Yes, this is true, but there is a logical explanation for this - many residents of third world countries after entering the United States will "get lost" and stay there illegally. By the way, I don’t know how it is now, but earlier, for everyone entering the US legally, vaccination (from covid) was mandatory, and for illegal immigrants who crossed the border and demanded citizenship/asylum, there was no such requirement  Thus, it was safer to enter the US illegally.

There are many people who think letting America host the 2026 world cup was a wrong decision and that they will have problems visiting this country to watch the World Cup games but I disagree and I think since America got the experience of hosting other great tournaments, they won't disappoint us and we are going to see a better world cup than what we saw in Qatar.

I don't think any other country can organize the World Cup in such a brilliant way in Qatar. The amount of money and initiatives they have spent around just one football world cup is not usually seen in other countries. Qatar finished the 2022 World Cup in good fashion.
It is not possible to enter America as easily as it is possible to enter other countries. When the World Cup is held in America, I hope that the American government will stabilize the rules for the World Cup visitors only.

[Leviathan.007]

There are many people who think letting America host the 2026 world cup was a wrong decision and that they will have problems visiting this country to watch the World Cup games but I disagree and I think since America got the experience of hosting other great tournaments, they won't disappoint us and we are going to see a better world cup than what we saw in Qatar.

Obviously it will be better than Qatar and at least there will be no discrimination against unmarried couples and beer will be made available at the stadiums. Hotel rooms will be less expensive and travel will also be easier. But none of this matters, if the fans are unable to get a visa. Anyway, we have 3 years to go for the start of the tournament. Hopefully we will get some clarification regarding the visa issue by then. BTW, a lot can happen in three years. POTUS election is scheduled in around one and half years, for example. It's outcome can have a huge impact on the visa rules.

I agree with you, no matter how much money they spent for the world cup and how they invested in the stadiums they build for the world cup, Qatar could adopt the rules for the people who visit this country to watch world cup games and people who visited Qatar had no freedom in this country which is more important than spending money.

[Japinat]

There are many people who think letting America host the 2026 world cup was a wrong decision and that they will have problems visiting this country to watch the World Cup games but I disagree and I think since America got the experience of hosting other great tournaments, they won't disappoint us and we are going to see a better world cup than what we saw in Qatar.

Obviously it will be better than Qatar and at least there will be no discrimination against unmarried couples and beer will be made available at the stadiums. Hotel rooms will be less expensive and travel will also be easier. But none of this matters, if the fans are unable to get a visa. Anyway, we have 3 years to go for the start of the tournament. Hopefully we will get some clarification regarding the visa issue by then. BTW, a lot can happen in three years. POTUS election is scheduled in around one and half years, for example. It's outcome can have a huge impact on the visa rules.

I agree with you, no matter how much money they spent for the world cup and how they invested in the stadiums they build for the world cup, Qatar could adopt the rules for the people who visit this country to watch world cup games and people who visited Qatar had no freedom in this country which is more important than spending money.

Prohibiting the use of liquors is a big turn-off for the visiting audience during the Qatar World Cup because we cannot really deny that with liquor, almost everything is more fun and enjoyable. But they cannot do something about it as Qatar is a Muslim country with cultures that needed to be respected, drinking liquors in a public place is considered lawful in their country. But this time, that will not be a problem because people have the freedom to drink and enjoy the games to the fullest.

[freedomgo]

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, USA is one of those countries which favor illegal immigrants over legal immigrants. If you apply for a legal visa, you need to wait for 3-4 years to get a hearing. An easier route is to travel to Mexico and then jump the fence over Mexico-US border. Every year millions of illegal immigrants take this step. Now I don't know whether the Americans will ease visa rules for the FIFA World Cup of 2026. If they don't do so, then I don't expect a large attendance from third world nations such as India and Indonesia.

Yes, this is true, but there is a logical explanation for this - many residents of third world countries after entering the United States will "get lost" and stay there illegally. By the way, I don’t know how it is now, but earlier, for everyone entering the US legally, vaccination (from covid) was mandatory, and for illegal immigrants who crossed the border and demanded citizenship/asylum, there was no such requirement  Thus, it was safer to enter the US illegally.

There are many people who think letting America host the 2026 world cup was a wrong decision and that they will have problems visiting this country to watch the World Cup games but I disagree and I think since America got the experience of hosting other great tournaments, they won't disappoint us and we are going to see a better world cup than what we saw in Qatar.

I don't think any other country can organize the World Cup in such a brilliant way in Qatar. The amount of money and initiatives they have spent around just one football world cup is not usually seen in other countries. Qatar finished the 2022 World Cup in good fashion.
It is not possible to enter America as easily as it is possible to enter other countries. When the World Cup is held in America, I hope that the American government will stabilize the rules for the World Cup visitors only.

Is that the only basis for a World Cup to be hosted greatly? I don't think so.

Yes, it's true that Qatar has poured so much resources just to build the much needed stadiums to cater the people who will wanted to see the games live but that is already expected because they are a Petro-country unlike any other countries that have hosted the World Cup before, and in-terms of money, I think it's already a fact that nothing can beat what the Qatar did but you'll see soon if Saudi Arabia can get ahold of the event by being a co-host because I bet they can host it in a way more luxurious manner.

[mm2543363580]

As I mentioned in one of my previous posts, USA is one of those countries which favor illegal immigrants over legal immigrants. If you apply for a legal visa, you need to wait for 3-4 years to get a hearing. An easier route is to travel to Mexico and then jump the fence over Mexico-US border. Every year millions of illegal immigrants take this step. Now I don't know whether the Americans will ease visa rules for the FIFA World Cup of 2026. If they don't do so, then I don't expect a large attendance from third world nations such as India and Indonesia.

Yes, this is true, but there is a logical explanation for this - many residents of third world countries after entering the United States will "get lost" and stay there illegally. By the way, I don’t know how it is now, but earlier, for everyone entering the US legally, vaccination (from covid) was mandatory, and for illegal immigrants who crossed the border and demanded citizenship/asylum, there was no such requirement  Thus, it was safer to enter the US illegally.

There are many people who think letting America host the 2026 world cup was a wrong decision and that they will have problems visiting this country to watch the World Cup games but I disagree and I think since America got the experience of hosting other great tournaments, they won't disappoint us and we are going to see a better world cup than what we saw in Qatar.

I don't think any other country can organize the World Cup in such a brilliant way in Qatar. The amount of money and initiatives they have spent around just one football world cup is not usually seen in other countries. Qatar finished the 2022 World Cup in good fashion.
It is not possible to enter America as easily as it is possible to enter other countries. When the World Cup is held in America, I hope that the American government will stabilize the rules for the World Cup visitors only.

Is that the only basis for a World Cup to be hosted greatly? I don't think so.

Yes, it's true that Qatar has poured so much resources just to build the much needed stadiums to cater the people who will wanted to see the games live but that is already expected because they are a Petro-country unlike any other countries that have hosted the World Cup before, and in-terms of money, I think it's already a fact that nothing can beat what the Qatar did but you'll see soon if Saudi Arabia can get ahold of the event by being a co-host because I bet they can host it in a way more luxurious manner.

That's true the visa policy is still a big question mark as visa are difficult for America and Canada and don't know how they'll ease their policies because that's the fact that people from third world countries can try to stay there illegally or other reasons .
Qatar set a standard hu hosting such world cup and that level can hardly be matched by any country .

[KTChampions]

Yes, this is true, but there is a logical explanation for this - many residents of third world countries after entering the United States will "get lost" and stay there illegally. By the way, I don’t know how it is now, but earlier, for everyone entering the US legally, vaccination (from covid) was mandatory, and for illegal immigrants who crossed the border and demanded citizenship/asylum, there was no such requirement  Thus, it was safer to enter the US illegally.

There are many people who think letting America host the 2026 world cup was a wrong decision and that they will have problems visiting this country to watch the World Cup games but I disagree and I think since America got the experience of hosting other great tournaments, they won't disappoint us and we are going to see a better world cup than what we saw in Qatar.

I am 100% sure that in terms of organization in the US everything will be at the top level. In terms of the quality of the competitions held (probably in all sports), this is the country No. 1 and, of course, they will also hold the World Cup at the highest level. But the problem with a visa is a problem of a different order, and there will definitely be dissatisfied people who, for one reason or another, will not be able to get it.

[beerlover]

There are many people who think letting America host the 2026 world cup was a wrong decision and that they will have problems visiting this country to watch the World Cup games but I disagree and I think since America got the experience of hosting other great tournaments, they won't disappoint us and we are going to see a better world cup than what we saw in Qatar.

Obviously it will be better than Qatar and at least there will be no discrimination against unmarried couples and beer will be made available at the stadiums. Hotel rooms will be less expensive and travel will also be easier. But none of this matters, if the fans are unable to get a visa. Anyway, we have 3 years to go for the start of the tournament. Hopefully we will get some clarification regarding the visa issue by then. BTW, a lot can happen in three years. POTUS election is scheduled in around one and half years, for example. It's outcome can have a huge impact on the visa rules.

I think there will be special visa cases for this situation. I have seen Istanbul visa for this years UCL finals and they only ask for a ticket, nothing more, if you have the ticket they give you a visa for 3 months, the game is just one night. If it's the same for world cup as well then people will be fine, and yes I get it, it's easier to get a visa to Turkey than to get one for USA I assume, that must be true, I have never tried it for both so far so I can't really say, but it does make sense if that's like that.

But if you get just a single world cup ticket, and a hotel booking ,showing those two should be more than enough and you will probably get a visa. They will not have a reason not to take you in unless you are a criminal or something, it must be easier than normal times.

[temple]

Honestly, I dont understand what is lottery you are talking about. Maybe this is football finals feature, but in ice hockey, you just go online and buy ticket. Or buy tickets from resellers at the stadium. Right now you can freely go to https://www.lippu.fi/en/artist/2023-jaakiekon-mm-kisat/2023-jaeaekiekon-mm-kisat-3218460/?pnum=2 and buy a ticket for gold medal game. 150 EUR and you will see which ice hockey team is the best in 2023.

Lets take Frankfurt, Germany airport (one of the biggest and busiest airports in Europe) as a centre. Google say that cheapest one way airplane ticket is about 400 EUR. Same google say that Tampa hostels starting price is 40 EUR, taking into consideration, this is IIHF finals, everything will be booked, so I would double the price.

Total: 1000 EUR to see IIHF World Cup final + the amount you spend to get to Frankfurt + beer

The problems you might get - all the cheap tokens for prelims are already sold out now, but if you are alone and dont need 5-10 seats in a row, you still can get a ticket with a little effort.

P.S. Prelim tickets were starting from 12.50 EUR for a weak teams games, or from 22 EUR for games such as Canada vs Finland during prelims (but such tickets were sold out immediately). If you are from Europe, a bus from most of countries to Tampa would cost 20-50 EUR max, take some junk food with you and it will cost around 100 EUR to watch your favourite team play. 100 EUR can afford to spend most of average fans.

When there are important games in soccer, often times more people want to see the game than there is capacity in the stadium. That is when they accept applications for tickets until a deadline and then they run a lottery in order to determine who is going to get a ticket and who is not- I have no idea about ice hockey and whether it is so popular that more people want to see it than there are tickets to be sold.

I am mot sure whether lotteries are run for the World Cup, but if I remember correctly I think it has been like that in the past. Perhaps only for the final and semifinals, but I don't know.

When you are alone it is of course much easier to organize such a trip to the World Cup, but i believe that usually people would travel there at least with two persons or in small groups. It does need quite a bit of planning in advance.

[Leviathan.007]

Yes, this is true, but there is a logical explanation for this - many residents of third world countries after entering the United States will "get lost" and stay there illegally. By the way, I don’t know how it is now, but earlier, for everyone entering the US legally, vaccination (from covid) was mandatory, and for illegal immigrants who crossed the border and demanded citizenship/asylum, there was no such requirement  Thus, it was safer to enter the US illegally.

There are many people who think letting America host the 2026 world cup was a wrong decision and that they will have problems visiting this country to watch the World Cup games but I disagree and I think since America got the experience of hosting other great tournaments, they won't disappoint us and we are going to see a better world cup than what we saw in Qatar.

I am 100% sure that in terms of organization in the US everything will be at the top level. In terms of the quality of the competitions held (probably in all sports), this is the country No. 1 and, of course, they will also hold the World Cup at the highest level. But the problem with a visa is a problem of a different order, and there will definitely be dissatisfied people who, for one reason or another, will not be able to get it.

One reason for us to make sure about the quality of the 2026 world cup is because America hosting this event, people from all over the world watch the games and since America wants to prove they still can host a great event with better quality than others countries, I think American will try to be a better host than Qatar. 

[n0ne]

Yes, this is true, but there is a logical explanation for this - many residents of third world countries after entering the United States will "get lost" and stay there illegally. By the way, I don’t know how it is now, but earlier, for everyone entering the US legally, vaccination (from covid) was mandatory, and for illegal immigrants who crossed the border and demanded citizenship/asylum, there was no such requirement  Thus, it was safer to enter the US illegally.

There are many people who think letting America host the 2026 world cup was a wrong decision and that they will have problems visiting this country to watch the World Cup games but I disagree and I think since America got the experience of hosting other great tournaments, they won't disappoint us and we are going to see a better world cup than what we saw in Qatar.

I am 100% sure that in terms of organization in the US everything will be at the top level. In terms of the quality of the competitions held (probably in all sports), this is the country No. 1 and, of course, they will also hold the World Cup at the highest level. But the problem with a visa is a problem of a different order, and there will definitely be dissatisfied people who, for one reason or another, will not be able to get it.

One reason for us to make sure about the quality of the 2026 world cup is because America hosting this event, people from all over the world watch the games and since America wants to prove they still can host a great event with better quality than others countries, I think American will try to be a better host than Qatar. 

Even if the football is host by any of the small country that isn't good in economy will do its best. This means they always focus to make it better than the previous season unlike which country is the host. This time expectation over USA is high and I'm sure it'll be fulfilled. However the goodness that people experienced with Qatar football can't be felt with FIFA in USA. In each and everything USA could lead, but it'll be hard for people to reach USA same as how they reached Qatar to watch the matches.